South Carolina announced the firing of offensive coordinator Kurt Roper on Wednesday.

Co-offensive coordinator Bryan McClendon will call offensive plays for the Gamecocks in the Outback Bowl on Jan. 1 against Michigan. Coach Will Muschamp will not name Roper's replacement until after the bowl game.

Roper spent the past two seasons at South Carolina and also coached with Muschamp at Florida in 2014.

Roper was among the top candidates for the head-coaching vacancy at Rice, his alma mater, but the school is planning to hire Stanford offensive coordinator Mike Bloomgren. An official announcement is expected later Wednesday.